A new article about Rebecca. I hope this happy attitude is not for show. I would hate to think she is crying when she isn’t on twitter.
As happy as I am to have a Woga-less Olympic team I can’t help but feel a little for Rebecca Bross.
I always thought I could not stand this gymnast but when watching Trials I found myself rooting for her to hit. I know, It even surprised me.
So if you were Rebecca Bross and you did not make the 2012 Olympic team what would you decide to do with the rest of your life?
Would you retire and go live a stress free life? Or would you stay the course and attempt to stay healthy enough to make the 2016 Olympic team? Would you stay with Valeri Liukin as your coach or would you find yourself a coach that actually gave a crap about you as anything but a means to an end?
It’s a tough choice. What Rebecca will end up doing is a mystery. If I made the decision for Rebecca I am sure it would be different.
IMO, Rebecca has two choices. Choice one, which is what I would do, is retire. She is too injury prone and inconsistent to compete with the likes of Kaitlyn Ohashi for the next four years. I just don’t see it happening.
The second choice if I was Rebecca would be to stay the course. Find a new coach that will care about me more then his personal hidden agenda of making his daughter a legend.
I don’t care what anyone says, Valeri quit on Rebecca the second his daughter was talked into training again so he could be Olympic coach. Woga knew Rebecca was falling a part and that is why she was an afterthought. Watching Valeri sit there with his arms around his daughters neck while Rebecca was no where to be seen is proof positive that Valeri had abandoned Rebecca. It’s too bad that Rebecca couldn’t even see what is right in front of her.
In the end I just want Rebecca to do what is going to make her happy. If she wants to train for four more years and ends up a relatively normal happy adult then who am I to say differently? I just hope she doesn’t end up as bitter as Kim Kelly.
Tags: rebecca bross
Gymtruthteller's Blog 
July 7, 2012 at 10:38 PM |
I think it would be good for her to at least take a year off and maybe start college and rest and then see how she feels from there if she decides then that she misses gymnastics too much then find a new coach and start a comeback because she’d still have 3 years to make a legit comeback attempt
July 9, 2012 at 6:39 AM |
This quad was a pretty big disaster for WOGA all around. What happened to Grace McLaughlin, did she quit gymnastics or just fail to make the national team?
July 9, 2012 at 11:31 PM
I heard that she retired from elite and is focusing on NCAA
July 7, 2012 at 11:34 PM |
Well if I were her I would have never gone pro until I had the guaranteed PR boost of being on an Olympic team. If I didn’t get it I’d then take this opportunity to go NCAA for a few years. A way to enjoy the sport without as much of the soul/body destroying aspect. Then decide if I was still up for elite – Anna Li style.
In her current predicament…. I’d probably quit. She just looks like she doesn’t enjoy it. Even if she switched coaches…. with that knee, with that ankle…. I could see her lasting until the next World’s but that’s it.
July 9, 2012 at 11:44 PM |
Why does everyone keep saying she never should have gone pro? In 2009 and 2010 when she was winning everything, she probably got a lot of prize money she otherwise couldn’t have accepted.
July 9, 2012 at 11:49 PM
College gymnastics is not for everyone and I never understood why people think you should do it if you don’t want too.
July 7, 2012 at 11:38 PM |
If I were her Id stay the course with a different coach; she deserves to end her career better than she did.
July 7, 2012 at 11:39 PM |
Oh and with a different coach for sure…
July 7, 2012 at 11:39 PM
Oops i already said that.
July 8, 2012 at 1:10 AM |
I agree, this one is a total mystery. Every time I watched her compete over many years, I felt she was unlike any other in that gymnastics truly was her everything and controlled every aspect of her being. We know certain athletes like Atler, Kelly, etc. struggled for at least a decade following their letdowns but even they still seemed to have other personality outlets beyond the sport at the same time.
Her physique is still years younger than her actual age (isn’t she 19 or almost now?) and she is conditioned as f*ck. But her mental state and knee may be done. I can’t imagine her going off to school at this point and having a grand old time, and being fulfilled by studying… but can I imagine her still training – yes – and doing better than has been – unsure.
The first step would be a new gym, in my opinion, and a coach without the Rybacki/Valeri mentality of changing not training/routine difficulties over time. That had to have a big part in her imploding physically and mentally. I was angry at Valeri since she competed that awful vault after everyone saying she wasn’t ready and had been crashing all week. What was the payoff in that decision? Oh yeah… endless gymnastics hell from that point on for Becca.
Cannot WAIT for an inkling about what is in her future.
July 8, 2012 at 1:21 AM |
How awesome would it be if she went back to Twisters with John Geddert and at least got a individual title of some sort with him? I can see her totally excelling in bars and if she eventually got her floor back she’d be back in the AA again. Maybe she could learn a different vault, and definitely get a new beam dismount.
At the very least she should take some time off, clear her head – then try to figure what will make “her” happy vs her family. I don’t think the WOGA situation helped her at all. Poor thing. Would love to know what’s going on in her head too.
July 9, 2012 at 1:52 AM
I could see rebecca working really john. it would be interesting to see rebecca back in gymnastics but i do not want to see her back if she is with valeri, and i do not see her leaving WOGA for another coach/gym.
July 8, 2012 at 1:51 AM |
Didn’t Vanessa Atler say something about Valeri having no patience or understanding for injuries? I’m kind of thinking he gave up on Becca as soon as she hurt her knee so badly.
Given the rumours about how pushy her dad was, I wonder how much /she/ really wanted to go to the Olympics. I hope she takes this time to tell both Valeri and her parents to shove it, and then really discover what she wants to do with her life, what will make her happy. If she works as hard at any potential career as she did at gymnastics, she will be extremely successful no matter what she chooses to do.
I would also really, REALLY love for her to write a brutally honest tell-all book (unlikely, I know). She must have tons of dirt on WOGA, Valeri & Nastia, all the USAG mind games etc. There are so many rumors about woga & valeri especially that I would really want to hear from someone who has full insider knowledge what it was like there during the “Nastia” years.
July 8, 2012 at 1:57 AM |
Hasn’t she already given up her NCAA eligibility? If true that’s really too bad because I would think that would have been the best for her now.
July 8, 2012 at 2:15 AM |
You guys, Becca made the decision to go pro and give up her NCAA eligibility, it’s not THAT big of a deal. NCAA is not the end all be all for elite gymnasts who don’t make it to the Olympics. I’m sure she took her time and realized NCAA gym is not for her. College gym isn’t for everyone, just like college isn’t for everyone or elite gymnastics isn’t for everyone.
Besides, even though she doesn’t have the mega endorsements that Shawn, Nastia and Jordyn have doesn’t mean she’s living off of bread and water. I’m sure she made more than high schoolers working minimum wage
I don’t see her writing a book either. Dominique Moceanu ‘woe is me’ she is not. We all like to think we know these girls but we don’t. I would always hear how miserable Becca is (I mean she definitely was after trials) and how she’s not friends with any of the girls, but she actually seems to have great friendships with all of the girls. Mckayla always says how much she loves her and Jo and Aly tweeting thank you to her etc.
Whatever Becca decides will be the best for her and I will support her. Continuing gymnastics, doing a different sport (Diving maybe like Amy Chow) moving on with her life. She’s a 6 time world medalist, her gymnastics career was far from a failure.
July 8, 2012 at 3:45 PM |
Diving – interesting idea.
I don’t think anyone is saying her career is a failure. I think most people are assuming that she may feel that way, and take things brutally hard. I hope she realizes just how successful she has been, but we know that when such girls fall short of making the Olympics, they don’t usually focus on that, and some don’t recover for a significant portion of their lives. Here’s hoping this isn’t the case for Becca.
July 8, 2012 at 3:16 AM |
She should go join cirque for a while to save money to move out on her own and travel some. if she can swim maybe switch to diving. after all she has gone though she should also go to therapy. She has to learn to reclaim her life and make the decisions that are right for her.
July 8, 2012 at 4:44 AM |
I hope to see her compete again but with a different coach, it would be nice if she could retire on a win. A question about college, if they go pro I see that it means they can’t do NCAA but does that mean they can’t compete with them at all or does that mean they can’t get a scholarship? Thanks, I have not done gymnastics nor live in the USA so a little clueless!! Thanks in advance 🙂
July 8, 2012 at 5:13 AM |
They cannot compete or get gymnastics scholarship for a college. And people seem to think that this means they’ll have a terrible college experience because they are not doing NCAA. Yeah, Rebecca gave up a free ride to college but if she really wants to go she’ll find a way to pay for it.
Alicia actually did college gym at Brown for a while and still trained elite also. I think it was after 2007 when she went pro.
July 8, 2012 at 11:22 AM
I agree Nero that life is not over for Rebecca just because she gave up her NCAA eligibility. I’m just wondering if she and her familly regret that decision now. It seems like the families that go pro early are thinking that everythimg is going to go great in the girl’s elite career and she will make the Olympics and receive a lot of endorsement money and it does not always work out that way.
July 8, 2012 at 4:49 AM |
Diana C. Replaced Haidu on the team
July 8, 2012 at 5:32 AM |
Wow GTT you think Rebecca’s downfall is all Valeri’s fault? I have been wondering soooo much what the situation had to be like for Nastia and Rebecca both competing for the SAME exact specialist spot on the Olympic team! On one hand it DID look like Valeri was ignoring Rebecca and giving Nastia all the attention in podium trainings and competition broadcasts, but we see a lot more of Nastia period. Also, it seems like Valeri should be more professional than that. I’m kind of thinking maybe the stress was just too much for all of them to take. Two girls is a lot for one coach to handle trying to make the Oly team, especially two who specialize in the exact same events. Can anyone remember a U.S. coach having more than one gymnast on the team since Bela and Mary Lee in 96??
July 8, 2012 at 2:25 PM |
Terin Humprey and Courtney McCool were both coached by Al Fong, right?
July 8, 2012 at 4:39 PM |
And Kelli Hill had Dawes and Ray in 2000.
July 8, 2012 at 5:53 PM
Wasn’t Sam Pezeck and Bridgete Sloan coached by the same gym too?
July 8, 2012 at 7:47 PM
No, Sam went to Bridget’s gym after the Olympics when her coach went back to China. I always thought it was cool how two girls from the same state, that grew up in two different gyms went to the Olympics together!
July 8, 2012 at 9:56 PM
Oh OK…didn’t really follow where Sam was from. That story kind of reminds me of Kyla/McKayla only they started at the same gym…still pretty cool how two Cali girls made this 5-person team 🙂
July 8, 2012 at 2:51 PM |
I don’t get why it’s such a crime that she went pro, there’s such uproar about it. Sure, maybe she will will regret it. But has she ever actually mentioned college gymnastics is something she wants to do? It shouldn’t be the graveyard of all elite gymnasts by default. It’s quite possible it absolutely doesn’t appeal to her at all. I agree with the general gist of your post GTT, I want her to do whatever she wants. I DO think she should take a nice long break before seriously committing to training again, she needs a rest.
July 8, 2012 at 3:29 PM |
I agree with you guys, I hope she takes a breath and really decides what’s going to make her happy. I feel so bad for her, because she was the “it” girl in this sport for 2012 since she was a little kid. That’s a lot of pressure every day, and I bet she feels like she let herself AND her gym down. I remember after Carly won, everyone said Nastia would win in 2008 and Rebecca in 2012. And then here we are… No threepeat. Poor kid.
July 9, 2012 at 12:06 AM |
I would looooooooove a book to come from this LOL
I hope she takes a year or two off and if she misses it, finds a new gym and comes back. Not sure what gym, but you never know who might call her up and offer to be her coach.
July 9, 2012 at 4:15 AM |
I would love Rebecca to keep going with gymnastics, but I don’t think she should take a long break, just long enough to get healthy. She is already 19, and a break will set her back even more.
July 10, 2012 at 12:39 PM
It could, but I would love to see her have some time to live a normal life for a little and decide if she really wants this for herself. Always seemed like she was being pushed by outside sources. Not saying she didnt love gymnastics and didnt work hard, but it always seemed like there was something clouding overhead, like WOGA or Dad drama.
July 9, 2012 at 1:23 AM |
I think it’s time for the NCAA to change their rules. At one time, you couldn’t go to the Olympics if you accepted any money and they changed the rules. Time for the NCAA to do the same. Why shouldn’t anyone who’s in college and makes a team be able to compete?
July 9, 2012 at 3:07 AM |
I agree Jazzy. The rule obviously stems from the old days when they feared college football teams would stock up with ex or even current pro athletes and gain an unfair competitive advantage. It’s different in gymnastics because there really isn’t a “pro” gymnastics league. The elite gymnasts already are, as a general rule, stepping down a level when they go to college. What difference does it make if some of them earned money from endorsements prior to college? The only rule should be that they cannot earn endorsement money while in college. These families make great financial sacrifices so their daughters can train as elite gymnasts. I don’t think it is right that their daughter has to forfeit the chance at a college scholarship if they earn what little money they can through endorsements.
July 9, 2012 at 4:15 AM |
I would think Rebecca saw this coming (“this” being not making the team) and hopefully had time to process it. Injuries suck- if the Olympics were two years ago, she’d be on it. Maybe she’d have more fun in college without the pressure of being on a gymnastics team or having to train several hours a day like if she stayed elite.
July 9, 2012 at 9:40 PM |
She must have realized, based on bombing at every meet and the needs of the team, it wasn’t likely. I wonder if she hit bars both nights if she’d be an alternate instead of Li.
July 9, 2012 at 11:33 PM
I think so. I think if Nastia had hit, she was first for the spot, then Becca. When they both bombed, it fell to Li. That’s just my opinion, but I can see it being reality….
July 9, 2012 at 4:45 AM |
first time replying to your blog. You are a snarky cow or bull (I don’t know who you are) but I like it.
Forget about Bross. Ohashi is about to be destroyed by Luikin and WOGA. Those people can’t teach vault to help themselves.
July 9, 2012 at 5:18 AM |
Maybe she should try ballet. She has GREAT legs and feet! (I like the retire and write a book, go to college choices).
July 9, 2012 at 1:40 PM |
I am still kind of wondering if she didn’t melt down on bars on purpose. Maybe even subconsciously. It kind of seemed that if her or Nastia hit bars they would make alternate for WOGA’s sake. She could have been thinking that she just couldn’t handle it another second and the only way out was to melt down…
July 9, 2012 at 8:49 PM |
I thought that myself.
July 9, 2012 at 8:53 PM
I can’t say I’d blame her she has been under tremendous pressure on her for the past few years I think things may have turned out better for her if she had changed gyms but she was probably afraid she’d be shunned by Marta for leaving Valeri and WOGA
July 9, 2012 at 8:58 PM
I feel for her if that is the case. Can you imagine having something that you committed your entire life to morph into something you hate so much that you would throw it all away publicly?
July 9, 2012 at 9:41 PM
There is definitely an aspect of Atlerism in her downfall. I wonder if she even understands it herself.
July 9, 2012 at 11:34 PM
yeah, possibly. She really just fell apart.
July 9, 2012 at 9:21 PM |
I don’t really think she did it on purpose. I remember first watching her mount bars and she looked SO determined – in a sense that she wanted to rock it. Then it quickly went to shit. Almost like the pressure became just too much. I have this feeling – just by the looks of it – that she somehow knew that with Nastia basically being done, WOGA’s chances were all on her shoulders of being considered for this Olympics and she basically couldn’t handle the pressure. I mean let’s face it – she wasn’t the best competitor. She was a very hard worker and determined, but often messed up when the pressure was on. I mean she would have been the 2009 World Champion, and she kind of knew it going into floor (last event), before she totally botched up one of her passes and nearly landed on her head.
July 9, 2012 at 11:35 PM
that’s exactly what I thought after day 2. I think everyone kind of unofficially knew that if Nastia hit, the bars alternate spot was hers. Then #2 choice was Rebecca. When Nastia fell, Rebecca knew she was in if she hit…and she just couldn’t keep it together. I feel terrible for her. I was really rooting for her!
July 9, 2012 at 11:40 PM
I think if Nastia had hit bars both days at trials Marta would have put her on the actual team but after she fell day one the only way she was going was as an alternate and I think even if Rebecca hit bars both days though she’d have only been an alternate with her having the beam dismount issue
July 9, 2012 at 11:41 PM
Nastia was promised a position ON the team if she hit.
July 10, 2012 at 12:06 AM
It just goes to show how corrupt gymnastics is when one bar routine in 3 years can get you on an Olympic team
July 9, 2012 at 3:11 PM |